Wimbledon's "Crazy Gang"—so-called because of the boisterous, eccentric behaviour of the players—won the FA Cup in 1988, beating that season's League champions Liverpool, and thereby became one of only three clubs to have won both the FA Cup and its amateur counterpart.[n 2] In 1991, following the publication of the Taylor Report recommending all-seater grounds for top-flight clubs, Wimbledon left Plough Lane to groundshare with nearby Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park—an originally temporary arrangement that ended up lasting over a decade. The team remained in the First Division and its successor the FA Premier League until they were relegated in 2000.

In 2001, after rejecting a variety of possible local sites and others further afield, the club announced its intention to move 56 miles (90 km) north to Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire. The idea of Wimbledon leaving south London was deeply unpopular both with the bulk of the club's established fanbase and football supporters generally, but an independent commission appointed by the Football Association granted permission in May 2002. A group of supporters responded by forming a new club, AFC Wimbledon, to which the large majority of Wimbledon fans switched allegiance.[2][3] Wimbledon F.C. played their first match in Milton Keynes in 2003 and changed their name to Milton Keynes Dons in 2004.[1]

Wimbledon Old Central Football Club were formed in 1889, taking its name from the Old Central School on Wimbledon Common where players had been pupils. The club's first match was a 1–0 victory over Westminster, and it only took seven years for success to come to Wimbledon as the club won both the Clapham League and the Herald League in 1895–96. Wimbledon won the Clapham League again in 1900–01, as well as two minor trophies. A meeting was convened on 1 May 1905, and the decision was taken to drop "Old Central" from the club's name – the club became Wimbledon Football Club, and under its new name the club won the South London Charity Cup the same year – however, excessive debts caused the club to fold in 1910. The club was restarted a year later under the name Wimbledon Borough, though "Borough" was dropped from the team's name after barely a year. The club continued to play on Wimbledon Common and at various other locations in the Wimbledon area until 1912, when the side settled at Plough Lane. Wimbledon joined the Athenian League for 1919–20, and in the second season in its new division finished as runners-up.[4] The club then joined the Isthmian League. Winning four Isthmian League titles during the 1930s, and reaching the FA Amateur Cup final in 1934–35, Wimbledon began to prosper. The club reached another FA Amateur Cup final in 1946–47, and finished as runners-up in the league twice over the next few seasons.[4]

Still in south London, 1980–81 saw Wimbledon regain Third Division status at the first attempt, at the end of an eventful season which saw chairman Ron Noades walk out of the club to take over Crystal Palace, taking manager Dario Gradi to Selhurst Park with him.[4] At Plough Lane, assistant manager Dave Bassett was promoted to manager. Under Bassett, Wimbledon were relegated in 22nd place.[4] Just before the survival battle was lost, injured defender Dave Clement committed suicide.[8] Wimbledon once again regained Third Division status at the first time of asking, triumphing as Fourth Division champions in 1982–83, and in the next season the Wimbledon players continued to excel as they achieved a second promotion to the Second Division after finishing runners-up with 97 league goals.[4]

1984–85 was Wimbledon's first season in the Second Division, and everyone at the club was prepared for long and hard struggle to preserve this status. A 12th-place finish was more than satisfactory for a club that was playing at this level for the first time.[4] The next year started well for Wimbledon as Middlesbrough were defeated 3–0 on the opening day of the season – the team was soon looking like a contender for promotion. Promotion in third place was sealed on the final day of the season with an away victory at Huddersfield Town. Thus, Wimbledon had reached the First Division, only four years after playing in the Fourth Division and nine years after being elected into The Football League.[4]

Nothing came of the plans for a new ground and at the end of 1990–91 the club's board decided that Plough Lane was beyond redevelopment to meet the new FA rule requiring all-seater stadiums.[11] Consequently, the club moved to Selhurst Park before the 1991–92 season, ground-sharing with Crystal Palace. Harford suddenly resigned in October 1991, to be replaced by Peter Withe. Withe lasted until just after the turn of the new year, when Joe Kinnear was promoted from the role of youth team coach, initially taking over as interim manager. After guiding Wimbledon to 13th place in the First Division and booking a place in the inaugural FA Premier League,[4] Kinnear got the manager's job on a permanent basis.

1992–93 began as a struggle for Wimbledon – the club were third from bottom on Boxing Day. However, the team recovered well in the new year and finished 12th.[4]The next season was one of Wimbledon's best seasons to date as the side finished sixth in the FA Premier League and reached the quarter-finals of the League Cup.[4] Wimbledon remained hard to beat in 1994–95, finishing ninth in the league.[4] During the close season the Dons made their first and only appearance in a UEFA European competition, entering the Intertoto Cup. However, after fielding an under-strength side containing reserves, youth team players and trialists in their group stage games, the club – along with Tottenham Hotspur – were banned from Europe for the following season.[12] Not that it mattered; after losing Barton to Newcastle, 1995–96 saw a drop to 14th.[4] Wimbledon made a fine start to the 1996–97 campaign – after losing the first three fixtures, the players proceeded to win their next seven and reach second place in the FA Premier League. There was delight in early February when they eliminated Manchester United from the FA Cup – Wimbledon reached both the FA Cup semi-finals and the semi-finals of the League Cup. Wimbledon's last hope of qualifying for European competition now lay with a challenge for a top-five league finish, but the team could only manage eighth.[4]

John Hartson (left, pictured in 2007) and Egil Olsen (right, seen in 2010) joined the club as player and manager respectively in 1999 and were involved during the 1999–2000 season, Wimbledon's last in the Premier League. Olsen left the side in May 2000,[13] just before relegation,[4] while Hartson remained with the side until February 2001.[14]

The 1997–98 season looked highly promising for Wimbledon as late on as Christmas, as the team were regularly in the top five. However, the side's form in the second half of the season was less impressive, and the club dipped to 15th place in the final table – the lowest finish yet for Wimbledon in the top flight.[4] A similar pattern followed in 1998–99 – a good start followed by a slump. As late on as mid-March, the team were on the fringe of a UEFA Cup place. The signing of West Ham United striker John Hartson boosted hopes of success for Wimbledon, but a terrible run of form in the final weeks of the season saw the side dip to 16th in the final table.[4] Wimbledon again reached the League Cup semi-finals that season – losing to eventual winners Tottenham Hotspur.[4]

Joe Kinnear stepped down as manager in June 1999 due to ill health, and was succeeded by Norwegian coach Egil Olsen. Wimbledon reached the quarter-finals of the League Cup, but the team's league form slowly deteriorated during the second half of the season. Olsen left in early May with the club threatened by relegation. Long-serving coach Terry Burton took over,[13] but on 14 May 2000, 12 years to the day after the FA Cup win, the side were relegated from the top flight after 14-years after a 2–0 defeat at Southampton and 1–0 win for Bradford City over Liverpool.[4] Burton remained manager of Wimbledon for two seasons in the second tier before he was sacked at the end of 2001–02 after the club had narrowly missed out on the promotion play-offs two seasons in a row.[4]

In August 2001, the club announced its intent to relocate to Milton Keynes.[15] Despite opposition from the majority of Wimbledon fans,[16]The Football League, and The Football Association,[16] they were given permission to do so on 28 May 2002 after a 2–1 vote by the three-person, independent commission appointed by the F.A.[16][17] The approval of the decision to move the club caused supporters who were against the move to found a new club, AFC Wimbledon, to which a majority of Wimbledon F.C. fans switched their allegiance.[2][3][18]

Goalkeeping coach Stuart Murdoch was promoted to manager,[19] and as attendances plummeted,[20] Murdoch's team finished 10th in the league during the club's last full season at Selhurst Park.[4] Wimbledon entered administration in June 2003,[21] and played their first match in Milton Keynes in September.[22] Although crowds attending the club's games at its new base were bigger than those at Wimbledon, the administrator in charge of the club's financial affairs sold any player who could command a transfer fee and Murdoch's team finished at the bottom of the league.[4][23]

The club's nickname was the Dons, though the club were also often referred to in the media as the Wombles from the mid-1970s onwards. Following the FA Cup victory in 1988, the term Crazy Gang also started to be applied; originally to the players, though over time to the club as a whole.[25] The club introduced a character mascot in 2000, a Womble named Wandle the Womble. However, following the relocation of the club in 2003, the owners of the Wombles brand refused to renew the licensing agreement in protest at the move. Three years later, a deal was agreed that saw a similar character named Haydon the Womble appear at AFC Wimbledon.[26]

The colours most associated with the club were blue and yellow.[25] The club's first colours were navy blue and white,[25] though the kit changed several times soon after the club's foundation, between combinations of: brown and blue striped shirts with navy blue shorts; green and white striped shirts with navy blue shorts; green shirts and black shorts; white shirts with navy blue shorts, and finally green and black striped shirts with black shorts.[25] Royal blue shirts with navy blue shorts and socks were finally settled upon in 1918, initially bearing a "W" (for Wimbledon) in the centre of the chest.[25] Wimbledon players then regularly wore royal blue shirts with black shorts and socks until a shift in the 1950s saw the shorts change from black to white.[25] A combination of blue shirts, blue shorts and white socks was introduced in 1966,[25] before being abandoned a year later in favour of an all-blue outfit.[25] The white socks returned in 1970.[25] A blue and yellow combination was first used in 1975,[25] but was replaced after a year with an all-white outfit trimmed with blue,[25] and this was the kit in which the club played its first season in the Football League. In 1978, Yellow shirts, blue shorts and yellow socks were adopted,[25] before the club made the change to an all-blue strip with yellow markings in 1981.[25] The kit underwent only minor changes until 1993,[25] when a darker, deep navy blue replaced the royal blue shade that had been used for the previous twelve years.[25] Wimbledon wore these colours for the remainder of their history. As for change colours, a red kit, with black trim, was a frequent choice in the 1990s. The club had a green away kit for the 2000–01 season.[25]

Wimbledon's final proposed logo, adopted before the 2003–04 season but not used on playing kit[27]

The first crest the club wore was the emblem of the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon. This emblem appeared on Wimbledon shirts from the late 1920s until the mid-1950s, when no badge was worn.[25] The coat of arms returned in the early 1970s,[25] before the club adopted its own badge on election to The Football League in 1977.[25] The crest was very similar to the badge most commonly associated with the club – the difference being the inclusion of white rather than yellow. Yellow replaced white in 1981, and this logo was used until 2003.[25] After the club's relocation to Milton Keynes was confirmed in May 2002, the College of Arms informed the club in August 2002 that its continued use of the Borough arms was illegal. A replacement, given the go-ahead on 12 April 2003, featured a stylised eagle's head – an element from the Wimbledon arms – drawn in navy blue and yellow outline, the yellow forming a rendering of the letters "MK" (for Milton Keynes).[27] Despite being officially adopted in April 2003, the logo's use was inconsistent: the club officially announced that it would be used "on all club kit, merchandise and literature from the start of [the 2003–04] season",[27] including on a new white away kit and on an amended version of the previous season's home outfit,[28] but this did not occur; both the home and away colours from 2002–03 were retained for the following year with the municipal arms still present. Moreover, the old crest continued to appear on official club statements towards the end of the 2003–04 season, making the status of the new badge ambiguous.[29][30]

From 2000 to June 2003, the original Wimbledon F.C. had used a Womble mascot named "Wandle", named after the local River Wandle, as a club mascot. However, in light of the controversy over the moving of the club to Milton Keynes, the licence to use the character was withdrawn by the Wombles' creator, Elisabeth Beresford as a protest.[31]

Wimbledon originally played on Wimbledon Common, using the Fox and Grapes public house in Camp Road as the team's headquarters and changing room. The club moved to Plough Lane in September 1912. During the 1930s and 1940s, crowds of between 7,000 and 10,000 were not uncommon at the ground. Wimbledon's highest attendance at the ground came on 2 March 1935, when 18,080 people were attracted to an FA Amateur Cup tie against HMS Victory. Floodlights were first used on 3 October 1960 in a London Charity Cup match against Arsenal.

The Plough Lane ground remained comparatively basic, and by the time the club had risen to the First Division the stadium had not changed greatly from Wimbledon's recent non-league days. At the time of the club's acceptance into The Football League in 1977, applicants had only to meet minimal stadium criteria, and once in the League these same criteria sufficed regardless of whether the club subsequently found itself in the Fourth or First Division. However, following the Hillsborough disaster and the subsequent Taylor Report, the football authorities introduced far stricter safety rules, which gave top-flight clubs specific deadlines by which to redevelop terraced grounds or to build new all-seater stadiums. The board of the club decided that Plough Lane could not be made to comply with these new requirements economically and, in 1990, they announced plans to temporarily groundshare with Crystal Palace at their Selhurst Park stadium.

Given the location of the Plough Lane ground, at the junction of two major roads and beside the River Wandle, major redevelopment of the site as a modern all-seater stadium might have been difficult, though not impossible. The club's board of directors maintained that it had "searched exhaustively with Merton Council" for a site in or around Merton on which to build a new stadium, looking at "14 different sites over a period of five years", in addition to commissioning feasibility studies for redeveloping both Plough Lane and the neighbouring site at Wimbledon Stadium. Despite this, nothing ever became of the board's continual promises to redevelop the site or to build a new ground within the borough, and the club remained as tenants at Selhurst Park for twelve years.[32]

Following the sanctioning of the move, most of the team's support left to AFC Wimbledon,[2][3] the new club founded by Wimbledon supporters in specific protest at the club's relocation.[2][3] During the 2002–03 season, AFC Wimbledon's first and Wimbledon's last full season in south London, average crowds at the new club were actually higher than those at the original, though still lower than those taken at Wimbledon matches before the relocation's confirmation.[33] Attendances during the 2003–04 season, Wimbledon's last, were higher than those at AFC Wimbledon: Wimbledon averaged 4,751 at the National Hockey Stadium, compared to AFC Wimbledon's 2,606.[33]

The club had two main supporters organisations– the official Wimbledon F.C. Supporters Club, and the more radical Wimbledon Independent Supporters Association (WISA) which was founded in 1995.[34] The WISA was instrumental in the formation of The Dons Trust in March 2002;[34] this trust, created in part to oppose the relocation to Milton Keynes,[35] helped the WISA to found AFC Wimbledon months after its own establishment.[34][35] Both the WISA and The Dons Trust from this point became affiliated to AFC Wimbledon, while the official Supporters Club became defunct following the relocation.[34][35]

From the mid 1980s, the club's main rivals were considered to be fellow south London club Crystal Palace (who were their landlord from 1991 to 2003) and west London-based Chelsea; however, neither of these rivalries was seriously reciprocated. Wimbledon were in the same division as Palace for a total of 11 seasons between 1984 and 2004, and in the same division as Chelsea for all but one season between 1986 and 2000.[36]

The record for most appearances for Wimbledon was held by Roy Law, who turned out for the club 644 times between 1958 and 1972;[37] Law's 433 league appearances was also a record.[37] Wimbledon's all-time top goalscorer was Eddie Reynolds, who scored 340 goals in 329 matches between 1957 and 1966.[38] The closest to Reynolds's record was Ian Cooke, who notched 297 between 1964 and 1977;[39] Cooke also made the second highest total number of appearances for the team, having appeared 615 times in a Wimbledon shirt.[39]

Wimbledon's best win was a 6–0 league victory over Newport County on 3 September 1983,[41] while the worst defeat was an 8–0 League Cup defeat at Everton on 29 August 1978.[41] Wimbledon's longest unbeaten league run was 22 matches between 15 January and 14 May 1984;[44] the longest league run without a win, 14, was set between 19 March and 28 August 2000.[44] Wimbledon's longest run of league wins was seven, set between 9 April and 7 May 1983 and matched from 4 September to 19 October 1996.[44] Wimbledon's longest run of league defeats was the eleven matches lost in a row from 10 January to 27 March 2004.[44]

Wimbledon's highest attendance, 30,115, was set on 9 May 1993 for the FA Premier League match against Manchester United at Selhurst Park but their official home attendance record is 18,080 vs HMS Victory in an FA Amateur Cup tie on 9 March 1935 at Plough Lane due to Selhurst Park being borrowed from Crystal Palace FC.[41]

Prior to the appointment of H. R. Watts as first team manager in 1930, a committee would deal with first team affairs, such as choosing the team on a matchday.[47] Doc Dowden was appointed manager in 1946,[48] and stayed in the position until leaving at the end of the 1954–55 season.[49]Les Henley arrived in his place as first team coach,[49] and stayed at the club for sixteen years in which the club progressed immensely, winning the FA Amateur Cup as well as three Isthmian League championships before turning professional and moving to the Southern League.[50][51] However, in 1971 Henley was replaced by Mike Everitt, who arrived as player-manager. After two seasons, Everitt left to manage Brentford and Dick Graham arrived as a replacement. Graham remained until March 1974, and a replacement was not appointed until July of that year, when Allen Batsford was made manager. Batsford led Wimbledon to The Football League, but resigned only halfway through the first League season.[51]Dario Gradi was made manager three days later,[51] but after three seasons he too resigned.[52] His replacement was Dave Bassett, who took Wimbledon to sixth in the First Division before moving to Watford.[52]Bobby Gould spent three years as manager before being replaced by Ray Harford, who spent just over a season with Wimbledon. After Harford, Peter Withe had a spell as manager lasting only three months. Joe Kinnear was brought in during January 1992, and managed the club until leaving in 1999 due to ill health. A season was spent under Egil Olsen in which the team was relegated from the FA Premier League before Terry Burton was made manager.[13] Burton's Wimbledon narrowly missed the play-offs twice in a row before he was sacked. Stuart Murdoch managed Wimbledon for the club's final two seasons.[19][53]

Wimbledon were a successful club even before election to The Football League, winning eight Isthmian League titles (including three in a row from 1962 to 1964) and three successive Southern League titles (from 1975 to 1977). Having also won the FA Amateur Cup in 1963, the run of Southern League titles prompted Football League election in 1977.[4]

Even at the higher level, Wimbledon continued to collect honours; the most notable being the FA Cup victory in 1988, which made Wimbledon only the third club to have won both the FA Cup and its amateur equivalent. Despite swift success in The Football League, the club's rapid ascent combined with short spells in the Second and Third Divisions meant that the team only won a solitary divisional championship within the League – the Fourth Division title of 1982–83.[4]

^Stuart Murdoch remained manager after the club was renamed Milton Keynes Dons. The date of MK Dons' first league match, 7 August 2004, was agreed upon in 2006 as the dividing line for statistical purposes.

^Barber, David (2010-10-18). "Four with his head". The Football Association. Retrieved 2010-11-21. “What happened at Wembley in The FA Amateur Cup Final of 1963 between Wimbledon and Sutton that had never happened before and hasn’t happened since?” The answer given at half-time, as I suspected, was “Eddie Reynolds scored four goals for Wimbledon with his head”.

^Noades, Ron (2001-04-01). "I looked at MK in the 70's". BBC. Retrieved 2009-05-30. I certainly looked for alternatives for rehousing Wimbledon, I mean, I could see the limitations in Plough Lane; but the big problem with Wimbledon was, in my view, was that Richmond Park was several square miles of parkland, where there weren't any houses, and it affected Wimbledon's gates compared to other clubs. Yes, we took an interest in Milton Keynes … we took a controlling interest in Milton Keynes, at the time they had financial problems, and I went up there, I was in the local press, I met the local authority, and they had a stadium site, right next to the big bus terminal there and the station, the main line route from Euston up to Manchester, and they were very keen to get a Football League club, effectively a franchise if you like, into Milton Keynes to take up that site. … I couldn't really see us getting any bigger gates than what Northampton Town were currently getting at that time, and, in fact, are still getting. I really couldn't see any future in it. I can't actually see that there is a means of drawing large attendances to Milton Keynes.

^Crabtree, Stephen (April 1996). The Dons in the League 1977–1982. Buckingham: Sporting and Leisure Press. ISBN0-86023-558-0.

^"Classic Cup Finals: 1988". The Football Association. Retrieved 2009-08-24. Outsiders at 33-1 before the third-round in January, Wimbledon turned the form book upside down to beat Liverpool, recently crowned League champions and one of the hottest favourites for years[.] … Beasant … was responsible for two FA Cup Final 'firsts' as he became the first goalkeeper to receive the Cup and the first to save a penalty kick at Wembley. … Dennis Wise's right-footer from the free kick curled in towards the near post, Lawrie Sanchez … scored with a simple glancing header into the far corner.